Now in its 5th year, The Songwriter's Beat is
New York’s most popular acoustic songwriter’s series,
where songwriters are encouraged to perform new material in a
supportive and intimate atmosphere.

Curated / hosted by multiple ASCAP
Pop Award winner Valerie
Ghent, The Songwriter’s
Beat features top up-and-coming
songwriters. Each month four
songwriters of varying
musical styles perform original
songs and are encouraged to try out
their newest material and
arrangements.

Founded in 2000 by Valerie Ghent, The Songwriter's Beat has
presented over 190 phenomenal songwriters (hailing from all
over the globe: from the US, UK, Australia, South Africa and
Japan!) and
keeps growing!

The Songwriter's Beat welcomes songwriters from around
the world, so if you are planning your trip to New York, allow time
for The Songwriter's Beat!
Cover $5
songwritersbeat.com
,
valghent.com

Against the backdrop of the Swing Era, Blues, Ragtime and Boogie Woogie, the decade
following the great depression was a fireball of poltical and social issues. In New York the
jazz clubs on 52nd Street (commonly known as “The Street”) hosted some of the greatest
performers of all time –Louis Armstrong, Lester and Lee Young, Count Basie, Duke
Ellington, Artie Shaw and an endless list of pioneers who ‘s artistry and fight for jazz
continues on today. They have left us a legacy on recording that the rest of us can only
dream about.

Tonight’s program is entitled “Blues, Bops and Memories” and it is dedicated to the Ladies
and songs of this decade –Bessie Smith, Billie Holiday, Ruth Brown, Lena Horne, Sarah
Vaughn and others. Each one was unique in voice, style and presentation – but the one
with the biggest flair for the lyric was Lady Day – she became the lyric and New York
audiences in the 1930’s had the time to listen to her story unfold. She performed and
recorded with the best Big Bands and jazz musicians New York had to offer – they all loved
her! Count Basie even called her William – she was one of them. I refer you to the 1936
-38 recordings of Billie Holiday. Unique!

Tonight’s program at the Cornelia Street Café will feature singer Rosemary George and
poet Golda Solomon in selections that bring back the lyrics and heart of a New York that
once was and is no longer. Thank you to the great ladies of jazz!
Cover $12
(includes one house drink)
www.goldajazz.com

Third Wheel is a compositional and improvisational love affair where one of the players is
voted out of the band at the end of the gig. We all try to play at our best so we don’t get
voted out. Third Wheel brings you patience, indulgence and spontaneity in a dynamic and
expressive collaboration.

“[Ted] has an uncanny ability to shape the music and a refreshingly unique, organic
approach to playing the drums.” Jazzreview.com

It’s a rare jazz record that traffics in the literary, rare that a bandleader wants to have
his music be “about” something. Violinist Sam Bardfeld’s “Book of Saul” is a Rushdie-
esque, fantastical coming-of-age piece about an ambivalent shlemiel striving for love and
greatness.
Bardfeld’s debut album, “Taxidermy” (CIMP), received a four-star rating from
Downbeat and was voted “One of the Ten Best Jazz Albums of 2000” by critics at CODA
and Cadence magazines. In “The Book of Saul,” his follow-up, he presents an equally
compelling group of pieces with a fresh instrumentation featuring violin, trumpet and
vibraphone.

“This no-nonsense jazz pianist in the Ellington and Monk vein (who has occasionally
written for Arts & Leisure) gets a big, ringing sound out of the extreme registers of the
instrument; he also takes a decisive stand against the ultra-sensitive, lush-harmony
tendency of so many young jazz composers. "One Hundred Dreams Ago" (Fresh
Sound), with a trio including the bassist Matt Penman and the drummer Gerald Cleaver, is
by far the best thing he's done, but he hasn't been making records for very long.”--Ben Ratliff, NYTimes, 7.18.04

"In the era of concept records, this startling young pianist has flipped the script: the
message behind One Hundred Dreams Ago is ‘let's just play.’ Accordingly the trio gets its
bustle on. Ellington's small groups are in the air here, and the pleasure Waltzer generates
is bountiful.”- Jim Macnie, the Village Voice
Cover $10
www.benwaltzer.com

Sunday
Apr 24

6:00PMBEAT NIGHTLarry Simon, host

Beat Night, Larry Simon combines music & poetry in his tri-monthly trip to The Apple from New Hampshire
Cover $6
(includes one house drink)

Instant composing combined with specific rhythmic patterns, musical
conversations inspired by the moment, the room, the evening. This trio
of
David Haney (Cadence Jazz Records CD release) piano, Argentinian
drummer
Juan Pablo Carletti, and drumming legend Andrew Cyrille, present music
and
an experience that is a window into the world of FREE SPEECH musica.

"...has played inside and out :from Bud Shank to John Tchicai"The Village Voice

The concert is co-sponsored by The Italian Cultural Institute of New York

As a composer, piano player, musical saw soloist, and ensemble artist, Luciano Chessa has
largely performed in the U.S. and in Europe. He has created performances and has written
music for different instruments and ensembles. His first recording, Humus (1997) received
excellent reviews in all the major Italian musical magazines (Fare Musica, Rumore) and was
voted by Rockerilla’s critics as one of the 10 best Italian recordings of 1997. His solo
clarinet piece for Italian virtuoso Guido Arbonelli was premiered in Strasbourg last spring.
His Cover $10

Dave Allen is celebrating the release of his debut CD, Untold Stories on Fresh
Sounds Records.

David Allen is a guitarist and composer based in New York City. His music is
both lyrical
and challenging, combining memorable melodies with complex harmonies and shifting
rhythms.

Among the notable players he has worked with are Mark Shim, Donny McCaslin, Chris
Cheek, Matt Wilson, Dennis Irwin, Ben Street and Eric McPherson. His trios and quartets
draw from the best young players on the NY scene and have performed at Birdland, The 55
Bar, Cornelia St. Cafe, The Knitting Factory and CBGB's Lounge.

Allen's CD, Untold Stories, features saxophonist Seamus Blake, known for his work with
John Scofield and Dave Douglas, and drummer Mark Ferber, who has become increasingly
busy working with legends such as Fred Hersch, Steve Coleman, Scott Colley, Drew Gress,
and Kenny Werner. And, bassist Carlo DeRosa, who is known for his superlative technique
and musicality, and who also works with Donny McCaslin, Brad Shepik, Clarence Penn, and
Vijay Iyer.

“There’s a true sensuality to the guitarist’s sound. On the new Untold
Stories, he brings a pearly tone to a piece called 'Searching,'
unfolding
his lines with an edge-of-your-seat stealth.
– Jim Macnie, The Village Voice Cover $10

Wednesday Apr 27

6:00PMSOULFUL WORDSSerita Eaton, host

Cornelia Street's own version of Upstairs Downstairs

8:30PMSOUL OF THE BLUESJon SobelNicola; Michael Brewster

This special edition of Soul of the Blues features.....Nicola and
Michael Brewster

SOUL OF THE BLUES, NYC's premiere *inexpensive*
live blues and soul music series, happens the fourth
Wednesday of every month at Cornelia Street Cafe.